Shadows
by e-disney23
Summary: Somehow, Voldemort is back, and he is after Lily Potter's life. One-shot.


Shadows

"You'd better hurry up, Potter, we haven't got all day," Scorpius snarled over his shoulder, his eyes narrowed in blatant disdain. Lily rolled her eyes, and deliberately walked slower, her disgruntled sneakers scuffing the stone floor with every step.

"We wouldn't be here if it weren't for you, Malfoy!" she retorted, crossing her arms.

"That's a load of dragon dung, and you know it!" he spat, his blue eyes venomously bright and accusing, his mouth twisted into an ugly snarl.

Lily heaved a labored sigh, and tightened her grip around her wand. She'd hex that Scorpius Malfoy in a _second_, if that's what it took to shut him up. She glanced at the slender, silver watch around her wrist. It was nearly midnight.

"What on earth are you doing with that Muggle toy?" Scorpius asked incredulously, wrinkling his nose with disgust.

"I'm checking the time, you bloody moron. What does it look like?" she hissed, and he crossed his arms, distraught.

"Why use that when you can just use a simple spell?" he retorted, scowling. "I mean, you just flick your wrist and say a few words!" he said, and smirked haughtily as Lily's eyes grew dark.

"Oh, is that your philosophy on life, blondie? No wonder you can't do anything without magic!" she said spitefully, scrunching her upturned nose.

"Oh, real witty, Potter. I'm _truly_ hurt," he drawled sarcastically, rolling his eyes pointedly at the younger girl.

Lily crossed her arms, and grumbled profanities under her breath. She glanced at her watch again, and sighed. She should've been in bed by now, and she would've, if it wasn't for Malfoy. He made a wisecrack about her cousin, Hugo, on the way to herbology, and when she overheard, she just had to make him pay. This included hurling every spell she knew at the boy, and that was somehow considered 'inappropriate behavior', by Professor Longbottom, the herbology professor. He gave both Lily and Scorpius a week's detention, patrolling the desolate halls of Hogwarts at night for Filch.

"Oi! Potter, Malfoy," Filch addressed the pair tiredly as he limped toward them. "I need you to go outside, and make sure that no one is sneaking out of the castle tonight. A bunch of sixth years keep trying to vandalize ol' Hagrid's hut, and I gotta catch the culprit," he drawled, taking a swig from the bottle in his hand.

"Why can't you just do it yourself?" Scorpius whined, crossing his arms with a sneer.

"Cause I need my sleep, and this is your job for the week," Filch grumbled, and mirrored Malfoy's wretched expression. He glared at the two students once more, before limping past them, down the long, dark hallway.

"Well let's go then," Lily mumbled, and the two of them trudged down the intricate staircases and out onto the vast, green lawn of the Hogwarts grounds.

"Lumos," Scorpius whispered, illuminating the tip of his wand as they stalked across the grass. Lily turned her head toward the sky, allowing the light breeze to rustle through her wispy orange hair. Moonlight cast a silvery light across her face, glinting off her emerald eyes, and highlighting her cheekbones, which were covered by a smattering of freckles. She noticed Scorpio staring at her, his mouth slightly open, and blushed deeply.

They continued across the lawn, not speaking to one another; simply strolling in an almost-peaceful silence.

"Let's split up," Lily suggested, breaking the wall of silence that they'd spent so long building up.

"No way," Scorpius protested with a curt shake of his head. "As much as I'd like to be rid of you Potter, Professor Longbottom would have my head if anything were to happen to you. I'm a seventh year, and you're only a fifth year, so I have to be looking out for you," he explained, looking down upon Lily, arms crossed.

"Seriously, Malfoy? You're really going to pull this one on me? I don't think so. I'm just as smart and good at spells as you are, we both know that!" she complained, but a small smile crept to her lips when Scorpius didn't disagree. "I'll be fine!" she added. Scorpius stopped and considered for a moment, before reluctantly nodding.

"Right then. Meet me here in a half hour, and don't wander far," he instructed harshly. "Just… er… call for me if you're in any trouble. He said, and Lily nodded eagerly before dashing off toward the lake.

She wandered about for a few minutes, with no real goal in mind. She soon gave up on paying attention to her surroundings, and instead lied on the grass, gazing at the black velvet sky, which was spotted with bright, luminescent stars. She was entranced by these gorgeous lights, the way they lit up the dark sky was exquisitely beautiful.

Lily was suddenly ripped from her daydream; as a bloodcurdling shriek pierced the night air like a knife, and she sat bolt upright, her heart pounding. She clambered to her feet, and began to run toward hers and Scorpius' meeting place.

"Scorpius!" she cried, praying that he was alright. As much as she hated the boy, she didn't want him dead. She heard quick footsteps in the distance, and soon Scorpius came running round the corner of the castle, his eyes wide and bright.

"Lily!" he called as he reached her. "Are you alright? I thought-" he began, but was cut off by his own labored panting.

"I know, I thought it was you as well," she stammered, leaning against the castle walls for support. "Where did that come from?" she asked, breathing heavily.

"The forbidden forest," Scorpius replied, pointing toward the dark mass of trees that lined Hogwarts grounds.

"We have to go In there! That could be a student!" Lily exclaimed, dashing toward the forest. Scorpius started after her, and pulled her back swiftly. "Ow! Watch it Malfoy!" she shrieked, and tried to pull her arm away from Scorpius' iron grip.

"No, Lily, it's dangerous. We could be killed!" he almost yelled, panic written across his pale face. "You can't go in there!" He cried. Lily scowled, and tugged her arm away.

"I can defend myself just fine," she grumbled.

"No, I won't let you! Don't be so _foolish_, Lily!" he called, but she ran off anyway, her thin legs moving as fast as possible, propelling her toward the forest. Scorpius sprinted after her, but alas, she was more agile than he was, and she stayed a few meters ahead of him as they entered the forest.

"Lily! Lily, STOP!" he called, but she ignored him. He pursued the younger girl through the rows of knotted, unruly trees, stumbling on rocks and fallen branches, calling her name weakly.

Lily soon came to a stop in a vast clearing, her arms falling limply to her sides in shock. Before her, lied a large centaur, its eyes wide and lifeless. No wounds marked its body, and its hooves were tangled around it unnaturally. Lily's eyes traveled across the clearing, and her heart stopped. Only ten meters away from her stood three tall, hooded figures. Her shaky breaths created thin clouds in the air, and all she could manage to do was stare ahead blankly. Scorpius came up from behind her, and had a similar reaction. One of the figures stepped forward, and slowly removed his hood with long, bony fingers.

The fabric of the hood slid aside to reveal a gruesome, pale face, with tight, dry skin, and only two slits for a nose.

"Impossible," Scorpius whispered beside Lily, and he grasped her arm protectively. Her knees suddenly felt weak, and she nearly collapsed on the hard earth below her. She recognized this wretched face from her history textbooks, and her father's stories. Before her stood Voldemort, the most powerful dark wizard who ever lived.

Her head spun rapidly, and she clung to Scorpius' arm, relying on it to keep her on her feet. Voldemort was supposed to be dead. Her father killed him when he was only seventeen... Her mind went blank as Voldemort stepped toward her, raising his wand, and pointing it at her heart.

"Well, if it isn't another Potter," he said icily, his voice like nails on a chalkboard. Lily's mouth dropped open as she backed away, but she stumbled on one of the hooves of the fallen centaur. "I see you've found my little hooved friend here," Voldemort hissed. "Would you care to join him?" he asked with a cold chuckle. Lily shook her head profusely.

"Y-you're supposed to b-be d-dead," she whispered, and his wretched face stretched into a hideous grin.

"Ah, yes, Lily, right you are. Your daddy killed me, didn't he?" he cackled wickedly, and his face contorted into a snarl. "Well, your _daddy_ overlooked one thing, precious: I am the greatest wizard the world, I can do anything. Even avoid death," he spat venomously, his yellow eyes burning with an angry passion. "When your father attempted to kill me, I had to transfer the remainder of my soul into the first object I could find: this stone," he explained, presenting a flat, black stone to Lily in his outstretched palm. "You could call it a 'final horcrux', if you like. It was my good friend Draco's," he grinned wickedly, gesturing to the man on his left. The figure removed his own hood, and Scorpius gasped.

"Dad?!" he cried, releasing Lily's arm. Guilt flashed in Draco's eyes, which were just as blue as his son's.

"Scorpius, I'm only doing what's best for you," he said firmly, clenching his jaw, as if he was holding back what he truly wanted to say.

"No," was all Scorpius could mumble as he sank to his knees. Lily bent to console him, but Voldemort addressed her sharply.

"Draco retrieved my soul from the stone, and here I am!" Voldemort said cheerfully, grinning once more. "It did take a while, but I'm back, and stronger than I ever was before. There is no stopping me now," he hissed, and pointed his wand at Lily once again. She pulled out her own wand, and directed it at the dark wizard. "We'll start with a simple curse, to get me warmed up, eh?" he said, his terrible voice full of glee. "_Crucio_!" he shouted, and Lily braced herself. She waited, but the stream of light never hit her. It instead seemed to bounce off of her, and melt away into nothing.

Voldemort's face contorted with anger. "What is going on?!" he shouted into the night. "_Avada Kedavra_!" he bellowed, but, like the last curse, the beam of light bounced off of Lily and disappeared into thin air. She gasped. What was she doing to cause this? Scorpius rose to his feet, eyes wide. "_Avada Kedavra_!" Voldemort tried again, this time aiming his want at Scorpius. An invisible shield stretched across him, and the spell was deflected. The two students stared at each other, dumbfounded.

"STOP!" a strong, male voice rang through the clearing. Lily turned to see professor Longbottom running to her, his robes billowing behind him and his wand pointed at Voldemort. The dark wizard snarled.

"Longbottom…" he growled, and aimed another jet of light at the professor. Again, the invisible shield blocked the spell.

"Voldemort, you cannot harm Lily," he called boldly. Voldemort cackled.

"Oh, and why is that?" he asked casually.

"Because she is protected by the same thing that kept you from killing her father: love," Professor Longbottom shouted. Voldemort's face twisted with rage, and he shot a dozen beams of light at the trio. Each of them was deflected by the shield. "As long as she's under aged, you cannot touch her," he spat. The dark wizard glared at Lily with the force of a thousand curses combined. He aimed spell after spell at them, but not a one of them touched their skin. Voldemort stepped toward Lily, and came so close that his flat face was only inches away from hers.

" You can protect yourself for two more years. Then I will come back, and everything you love, everything all of you love, will be destroyed." He hissed, and Lily winced at the rancid smell of his hot breath. "Don't think this is over, Potter," he snarled. "I will come for you, and in time, I will destroy everything your father loves. I will break him, and then I will end his life," he spat, and disappeared with his men with a bang.

Lily collapsed on the ground, and Scorpius did the same. Neither of them could believe what they'd just encountered. It should've been impossible, but it wasn't. He should've been dead, but still, he remained. Neville bent over and helped them to their feet.

"Are you alright?" he asked breathlessly. They nodded weakly.

"He should be dead!" Scorpius shouted. "He was dead!"

"I know, Scorpius. I know. But the dark lord has more power than I, or any other wizard could've suspected. We thought we had ended this, but we haven't," Professor Longbottom said, clenching his jaw. "You were very lucky," he said to Scorpius earnestly, "To have Lily here," he explained. "Her father passed the unconditional love that his mother protected him with her," he said, placing a hand on Lily's thin shoulder. She gasped softly. "Until you turn seventeen, you will be protected from Lord Voldemort. He cannot touch you for two more years," he explained, and Lily nodded.

"But… what will happen when I turn seventeen?" she asked fearfully.

"We'll have to see," Neville said gravely. "But until then, we have a war to fight, and a world to save. Voldemort will stop at nothing to destroy us all." He said, and Lily gulped. "I still don't understand how the dark lord could be back, but he is, and he's after blood," Neville pursed his lips.

Lily blinked, and tilted her head. Her entire life, her world, was crumbling before her eyes, and she couldn't stop it. Nothing would ever be the same. She'd always be on the lookout, always on the move. She realized now, that there were only two things in her life that were certain. One: her name was Lily Potter, And Two: she was condemned to die.


End file.
